What Is a Customer Satisfaction Questionnaire?

A customer satisfaction questionnaire is a document which contains questions aimed at getting a reaction about a particular event, product, item, experience, and so on from the people who patronize it, purchase it or participate in it. This form consists of questions with predetermined choices and options, or it may contain only the questions.

The format of the customer satisfaction questionnaire is dependent on the nature of the product being dealt with. Some of the significant points to be remembered while preparing such a customer satisfaction questionnaire, are as follows:

The customer satisfaction questionnaire must consist of questions which are completely unbiased and objective. The wording should not be vague at all, and there should be no ambiguity involved.

Such a document must not aim to elicit predetermined responses from the audience or customers. Honest opinions must be sought.

Assurance about the customer satisfaction questionnaire being properly utilized must be provided on the form itself. The customer filling the form must be told that his opinions are of value and will be acted upon with alacrity.

There should not be too many questions in the questionnaire since most customers have neither the time nor the inclination to fill in a very long questionnaire. Therefore the questions that do find a place in the questionnaire must be direct, pointed and relevant. Questions should be to the point and there should not be any beating about the bush.

The customer should be given the space to provide details of the purchase, like date of purchase, year of purchase, condition of the object while at the time of purchase and so on. This will make the questionnaire lucid and valuable, even for archival or documentary purposes.

A customer satisfaction questionnaire, therefore, can prove to be very useful if it is carried out with care and thought.